Waking Up
by DoodeSeriously
Summary: Set pre-2X08. Weird things are happening in Mystic Falls and Elena isn't sure she likes it one bit. But Damon might. A bit of smut. A bit of romance. A bit of fun. Will continue with more chapters. :
1. Chapter 1

Elena could feel the coolness of his skin against her sweaty body as he slid her down his chest to settle her on top of him. The soft moan came over her lips without her realising it when his tongue reached out to nibble at her breast. His lips closed around her nipple and he let his teeth very gently bite her. It felt like an electrical charge had gone off in her brain. She breathed in heavily and threw her head back in elation. He worked his way to her other breast with soft kisses, while he rhythmically moved his hips against hers, hands clasped around her hips in a firm grip.

She pulled herself closer to him and while running her fingers through the softness of his hair she placed her lips over his. He grabbed her by the neck and forced her lips open with his tongue, she answered him willingly all the while letting herself move in response to him. There was urgency, an intensity, in his kisses that spurred her on and she could feel her pulse hammering harder where ever he was touching her. She belonged to him and he belonged to her and they were one.

He rolled them both over, sliding his hands over her arms and up to her hands that lay above her head. He kissed her passionately again, moving on to her cheek, nibbling at her ear and down to her neck, where he stopped. His lips gently caressing the sensitive area on the side of her neck. She moved her head to the side just a fraction. His breathing increased as he understood the underlying 'yes' in her gesture.

'Are you sure', he whispered quietly, his breath raising goose bumps on her skin. Elena nodded again, unable to speak. The excitement was starting to be too much for her. She grabbed at his hands as he let his tongue slowly trail the vein in her neck. Elena raised her hips, eager to meet him, feeling like she was floating. His soft moans of pleasure made the hair at the back of her neck stand up and she gripped the head of the bed with both of her hands. He followed suit and they were holding each other's hands through the bars of the head board.

'Please', her whisper came out as an exasperated sigh, a longing she had never felt before. His elongated teeth grazed her skin and he started moving his body quicker against her hips and she responded eagerly. She could feel the warmth of the approaching orgasm spreading in between her thighs. She felt his hands grasping hers harder, both of them holding against the bars of her head board. There was a soft banging each time their hips crashed against each other.

'Elena', he whispered. 'Elena'. It was more than a sigh. 'Elena!' he said it louder with each of the times his hips met hers.

'Please, Damon. I want you. Please', she whispered in frustration.

'Elena', Damon said out loud now in between the banging of the head board. He had lifted his head and was looking at her with a confused look on his face. It was still flustered and beautiful and she tried to drag him down towards her again, but he wouldn't budge. She could still hear the banging sound of the head board against the wall, even though they had stopped moving.

'Elena!' The sound of her name didn't come from Damon at all; his lips were closed and he looked like he was floating above her.

With a start Elena woke up and nearly fell off her bed in the process, sheets tangled around her legs and her pillows on the floor.

'Elena!', she could hear Jeremy call through her door, while banging on it. 'Elena, I'm serious this time. You need to wake up! We're gonna miss school.'

'I'm up', Elena muttered while she tried to untangle her legs from the sheet, failing miserably and stumbled across the floor with the sheets still around her legs when she opened the door for her brother.

He looked at her with bewildered amusement.

'What's up, sis? It's the third time this week?'

'Yes, I know. I _know_', mumbled Elena incoherently. 'I'm just going to freshen up quickly. Will you make me a cup of coffee, please Jer?'

She headed for the bathroom that connected her and Jeremy's room. She couldn't believe it. This was the third time in a row she'd had the same dream about... she shook her head in annoyance. She could still feel the aftershock of the ecstasy she had experienced just minutes earlier, and she realised, or rather, she hoped, that she hadn't said anything out loud for Jer to hear.

She looked herself in the mirror.

'Elena Gilbert. There is something seriously wrong with you.'


	2. Chapter 2

Damon could hear Elena as she came through the entrance of The Grill. Not in a sense that he could literally _hear_ her over the music and the chattering people, but it was the beat of her heart. He would recognise it anywhere. The soft thumping of her heart seemed to have some sort of strange hold over him. It calmed him down, made him feel alive. A very humiliating thought for a vampire, odd even, in some circumstances.

He shouldn't be able to single out her heartbeat in all that noise, but somehow... Damon felt attuned to Elena's body in an eerie kind of way. He had done ever since saving her from the car wreck a while back. But he had always tried to tune out the closeness for fear that he would start feeling too much, not be able to hold it back. Not be able to keep his feelings from her.

But then Elijah had nearly killed them all and seeing Elena on the top of the stairs looking down at him with those doe eyes had made his dead heart flutter.

Hearing her heartbeat had been his saving grace. He had done a good deed. He had saved his brother, but most of all; he had saved Elena. Just like he had told Katherine he would. And he knew he always would.

Protect her. Save her. Be all for her.

Give her up just to be able to stay close to her.

He had to force himself not turn around to prove himself right, but he could hear her heartbeat getting closer to him, and it was picking up in speed. His brows furrowed. Why? It wasn't like Stefan was around...

He couldn't resist it; he had to turn around to find out why her heart was beating so fast. When he did, he found himself facing Elena as she was only inches from his face, looking at him very intently. He was taken aback a little. He wasn't used to Elena coming up that close to him at all. She usually kept her distance; he was the one trying to get close to her. Not exactly touching her, but sometimes brushing against her, just to feel her, just to make her feel unsure of him. To make her feel a bit frightened of him. But after the other night... he would have to leave her alone. He had to, for his own well being. And for her.

Right now, she was frightening _him_, and that was a very infrequent happening. It was just the way she was looking at him; eyeing him up and down. If he hadn't felt the warmth of her body so close to his, he would have bet it was Katherine standing in front of him staring him down. And after the prank Katherine had pulled on him outside on the porch of Elena's house, he'd always listen to Elena's heartbeat when one of those doppelgangers was around.

'Elena. What brings you here? And where's Wonderboy? Not with you tonight?'

He started to turn around to the bar again, when she lifted her hand and touched the sleeve of his jacket. Their eyes met and for a moment, something close to an electrical current passed between them, and Damon literally had to catch his breath. His eyes flickered down to her hand, before she slowly withdrew it from where it had been resting on his arm.

'Stefan is helping Caroline. Showing her...' Elena seemed to scan his face for something. '...well, something to do with being a vampire and freaking out. I didn't really pay any attention to what they were talking about.'

That sounded a bit off, Damon thought. Elena always listened to Stefan. And she always had an interest in her friends. Especially now, with Caroline being a vampire.

'Well', Damon said. 'What owes me the pleasure of Miss Elena's presence then?' This time she didn't stop him as he turned his back on her, and he emptied his drink in one go, then pointed to the empty glass for the bartender to fill him up.

He couldn't look at her. He'd kept away from the old boarding house in an attempt to steer clear of her, although he hadn't been able to avoid seeing her when that Rose-character had shown up telling them about Klaus and the threat to Elena's life.

(Like Damon would ever let some random vampire hurt Elena. Strong, ancient – whatever. That guy better stay the hell away from her.)

Just thinking of Klaus made his jaw tighten.

And weirdest thing was now, for the first time, in a very long time, she'd come looking for him.

Damon could hear her heartbeat increase just a little as she moved to stand next to him. As he raised his glass to take a sip he looked at her sideways leaning against the wooden bar top on his elbows. He decided to go for the cut-throat option.

'Spit it out, Elena. I don't have the time or energy to waste on trying to pry out of you what it is you want.'

She flinched at the harshness of his tone, but seemed determined not to let it bother her.

'I...', she started. She shook her head and took a deep breath. 'The other night I...' She stopped again, seeming to have lost her nerve.

Damon stood still with the glass half raised to his lips. He was frozen in place for just a sliver of a second by Elena's words. He quickly resumed his normal smirk.

'You want to thank me for saving your neck, and my dear brother's. Why, of course, Elena. It was my very own pleasure', he drawled, finishing this drink as swiftly as the last one; all at once. 'Fill me up', he told the bartender, who promptly did as he was told.

'No, I. Well, yes, of course.' Elena stuttered. 'Of course, Damon. I can't thank you enough. If you hadn't been there...'

There was a very flattering shade of pink staining her cheeks, and Damon had to clench his hands to fists to keep from touching her.

'Stefan would most certainly have been dead. And you too', Damon finished raptly.' I'd ask you to join me for a drink, but I'm not feeling in the mood for company tonight.' He kept his voice flat but wouldn't dare look at Elena for fear of seeing the hurt in her eyes. He wouldn't be able to take it, not right now. He hated feeling vulnerable, and the only one who could do that to him, was standing so close to him, he could feel the heat of her body right through his clothes, right through his skin, penetrating his bones as if there would have been nothing between them at all.

But he couldn't risk her saying out loud what he thought she would how could she. She had been vervain free when he had told her how he felt. It was impossible. Unless she had turned, and by the sound of her beating heart, he knew that wasn't the case.

'Damon', Elena's voice trembled slightly. 'I need to ask you something. It's very important. I just need to know, and then I'll leave you alone.'

He let out a deep sigh and turned to face her. She was nervously playing with the vervain necklace he had slipped back around her neck after telling her how he felt about her.

He had been stupid to tell her, but he had had to do it. The thought of something happening to him, or God forbid, her, without her knowing, without him having told her his true feelings. It would have broken him.

'Be quick', he snapped at her, as a contrast to his thoughts.

'I just need to know... Did you come into my room the other night, after the rescue?' Elena's eyes bore themselves into Damon's. Into his soul it felt like, and he forced himself to throw his head back and laugh. He looked down at her shaking his head lightly. He had to keep it together because Elena, with her deep brown soulful eyes, could see right through him. She always called him on the shit he pulled, and she always made it impossible for him to be untruthful to her.

'Now, why would I sneak into your bedroom, Elena? You have made it perfectly clear to me that you don't want me there.' The sarcasm in his voice was more than tangible. 'Please, leave me alone now. I'm tired and I'm drunk and I really, _really_ don't want company tonight. Not even yours as sweet as you might be.' He once again turned towards the bar.

Damon could see Elena out of the corner of his eye. How she stared at him for just a moment, then looked around as if to find some sort of answer among the other punters in the bar. Eventually he heard her deep intake of breath before she slowly walked off in direction of the exit.

Damon put the glass against his forehead and closed his eyes. He couldn't believe it! She knew. Somehow she knew, but how. Vervain free she should never remember. The compulsion he used was so strong, it was just impossible. And now, his sweet little brother would find out about what he had done. And Damon could only guess that it wouldn't be the confession itself that would infuriate Stefan as much as the fact that he had used compulsion on Elena.

Elena could feel angry tears threatening to break through as she quickly walked across the parking lot to her car. Damon could just be such an ass sometimes. It was just the way he was, cold and rude. But he was hiding something. She could feel it.

When she'd been standing in the middle of her room that night, after being kidnapped, and she'd felt the necklace around her neck, like it had never been snatched from her at all, she knew something strange had happened. She'd asked Stefan the very next day, had he given it back to her somehow, but he said no. Stefan had then asked Damon who had also denied giving it back to her, saying he was too busy killing 500-year-old vampires to look for a necklace.

And now, she'd dreamed of Damon every night since. The dreams seemed so real that it felt like they truly happened. And that was why she'd picked up the courage to go looking for Damon to ask him, when Stefan wasn't around; asking questions of his own. The brothers' relationship was still strained, but they were trying really hard to build up a trust between each other. And Elena was not going to do anything to break that trust. But she had to know. It was in her nature.

The dreams were so vivid, even the thought of it frightened her. She could still feel Damon's lips against her forehead and his hand on her cheek. Still hear the sound of his heavy breathing and feel his toned body against hers. It made her face burn and she grimaced slightly at the thought.

Damon was... Damon. He was nothing but a bully; the epitome of a vampire with no deeper feelings than 'what's for dinner tonight? Young fresh student or a stay at home mom?'

But as Elena turned the ignition, another flash of her dream came to her. Damon's blue eyes forcing their way into her very soul. His voice telling her he loved her. The sweetness of his breath touching her skin. And the burning longing for him to pierce her skin and take her blood. Her face flushed and she shook her head to get her to think more clearly again.

She turned the key and headed home. Aunt Jenna was still bedbound since 'the knife accident' and needed help with everything. Well, almost, since Ric had a tendency to always be there...

It wasn't like Elena didn't know that Damon harboured feelings for her. She'd known for a while now. Bonnie had told her as much. Stefan too. Even her birth mother, Isobel. And though his actions often spoke against it, Elena could feel it sometimes when she caught him looking at her. They were real, his feelings for her.

Yet, this dream, it felt like so much more than just a dream. And why did it feel like the dream had happened before she even fell asleep? That was the weird part. It had felt like she had been asleep and all of a sudden woken up, standing in the middle of her bedroom, holding her necklace that Elijah, the vampire bound to make her some sort of sacrifice, had ripped from her neck and thrown down on the floor of the derelict house she had been held captive.

It really bummed her out that she couldn't find answers to her questions. And not that she had thought that seeking up Damon would have made things clearer, but she had been hoping. But what really freaked her out was the way she had felt when she'd seen him standing at the bar. Her heart had started beating faster at the bare sight of him, and not by fear as it usually did when she was around him. This time, her heart had reacted differently. It reacted the way it usually did when she would see Stefan. And _that_ was what frightened her.


	3. Chapter 3

'Earth to Elena!'

Elena was dragged back into reality by the irritated tone in Caroline's voice.

'You haven't heard anything I've said at all, have you? Caroline let out a sigh of frustration. 'Ok, so you really need to tell me what's going on with you.'

Trying to avoid the subject wouldn't cut it for Caroline any longer, Elena was sure of it. They were sitting on Caroline's bed, listening to music, after Elena had watched Caroline model some new outfits she'd bought for the approaching masquerade ball at the Lockwood's. Caroline had fallen for a beautiful red off-the-shoulder dress and she'd been telling Elena about the mask she was going to wear, when Elena had sort of zoomed out.

She might as well fess up. And, maybe Caroline could shed some light to Elena's… well, problem. Elena just didn't know how to breach it.

She knew it would be easier to talk to Caroline about this than with Bonnie. Not that she didn't trust Bonnie. It was just that, Bonnie really hated Damon. And to tell her about a crazy sexual longing to a person she hates, Elena kind of knew how that conversation would end.

Elena usually pretended it wasn't true, but, the matter of the fact was, that in letting Stefan and Damon Salvatore into her life, she and Bonnie had been pulled apart. She didn't know how it had happened really, but this divide had permanently damaged the closeness they'd shared.

She could understand that it upset Bonnie, but if Bonnie wasn't willing to meet her half way, like she did, they would stay divided. She would wait for Bonnie to get over her aversion to vampires, but Elena wouldn't bend. So that's why, she was here with Caroline, looking at dresses and talking smack. And really, not paying any attention at all to what Caroline was saying. Poor thing.

She looked over at Caroline who was staring back at her intently and with furrowed brow. There was no other way than to take the bull by its horn.

'I've had these weird dreams lately. They scare me.' She let out a puff of breath as a flare of Damon's fiery blue eyes flickered before her.

'What are they about?' Caroline asked, smiling now. 'You know, it's too late saying you're afraid of the dark and supernatural creatures.'

Elena smiled back, a small smile. A sad smile, Caroline noticed. She scooted closer to her friend.

'What's wrong, Elena.' There was real concern in her voice.

A short intake of breath and Elena told a stunned Caroline about the weird lifelike dreams she'd been having about Damon. About how real they felt, and how she could still feel his touch against her skin. She skipped the part about wanting Damon to draw her blood and how much the thought exited her, but somewhere she got the feeling that Caroline understood.

Caroline didn't open her mouth for a long time. They sat in silence, both contemplating what Elena had just said.

Eventually Caroline slowly shook her head.

'Wow, Elena. I really don't know what to say. I mean, it's Damon. You don't even like him. He tried to kill Jeremy. And Bonnie.' Her eyes hardened. 'And me for that matter.'

Elena inadvertently mimicked Caroline's headshake.

'I know', she whined. 'What is wrong with me? I've never thought about him that way before. And now, all of a sudden, I can't stop thinking about him. I'm just so glad he doesn't know; can you imagine if he'd find out.' Elena fell back on the bed and groaned. 'It just felt like he was really there, in my room. Do you know that I nearly confronted him yesterday? My god, I'm so stupid.'

Caroline's head quickly turned to Elena. She looked down at her, looking slightly rattled. But Elena didn't notice, as she had her arms crossed over her face.

'Hey, Elena. I just remembered. I have to meet up with Tyler. We're kinda gonna go through the whole werewolf list of things he needs for his transition.' She slid off the bed and stood up.

Elena lifted her arms from her face and looked over at Caroline, who seemed to avoid her eyes.

'Oh, ok.' Elena stood up as well and brushed her clothes straight with shaking hands.

This hadn't gone too well, she thought. Caroline is avoiding me now. She's actually lying to get rid of me.

Elena started to walk out of Caroline's stylishly romantic bedroom. She turned around by the opening trying to catch Caroline's eyes, but Caroline was steadily avoiding lifting her gaze up to meet Elena's.

'Well. See you.' Elena said quietly and walked out.

* * *

Damon didn't even see her coming.

There was a huge crash as something pushed him into the wall of the farthest part of the library in the boarding house. He used his vampire speed to get back on his feet, but she was already standing up, fangs out, blonde hair tousled.

He rolled his eyes and let out a bored sigh.

'It's you,' he drawled and started to walk past her, to the whiskey smooth he'd poured himself as she came barging in.

Caroline hissed and took a quick step in front of him to stop him.

'Caroline', he smiled dangerously. 'Get out of my way.'

She shook her head, but de-vamped.

'What you're doing to Elena is despicable, Damon. Even for you.' She spat the words and looked him up and down with a disgusted look on her face.

His brows furrowed for a moment, but then he shrugged it off and pushed past her. Whatever she was up to, he wasn't going to fall for it. He wasn't joking when he'd called her Vampire-Barbie. He'd never take her seriously.

She vampire-sped in front of him again, this time snagging the drink he'd picked up from his hand and threw it into the fireplace.

'I'm not joking around, Damon!' Caroline yelled. 'You compelling Elena and getting into her head while she sleeps is not cool, and you know it. And how the hell do you manage it anyways? She's wearing her vervain necklace.'

At this Damon stopped thinking about the best way to throttle Blondie and he focused on what she'd really been saying.

'What do you mean by getting into her dreams, Caroline?' His eyes narrowed. 'And since when have I been able to compel someone who's wearing vervain?'

(He knew he looked as though he didn't care, but there would have been visible signs of sweating on his forehead, had he not been a vampire.)

'Elena told me', Caroline snapped. 'And I know you well enough to know that you'd stoop that low.' She threw her hair over her shoulder and looked at him with a raised chin. 'You did it to me, remember.'

'I did it to you because you didn't wear vervain. I did it because I could.'

Suddenly anger flared inside of Damon. He shouldn't have to try to defend himself. He had done nothing wrong here. 'And because, you were easy that way.' His customary evil smirk was back in place.

Caroline's head whipped back out of hurt.

Damon took the opportunity to try to get out of her the reason Elena would lie about having her dreams tampered with by him. He had done no such thing, his conscience was clear. The compelling he had done, had been necessary, not out of spite or selfishness.

He moved closer to Caroline, staring hard into her eyes. She tried to evade his intent look, but she couldn't slide away from him.

'Now, I think you should tell me why Elena is telling you tales, Blondie.'


	4. Chapter 4

**I am honestly really chuffed over all the responses I've received! Thank you all ever so much!**

** I'm so sorry I haven't answered your comments properly, firstly because I haven't the faintest idea if I'm doing it right and second, how do I know which ones I've answered hahah**

**This is my first ever fanfic and if I make mistakes; please correct me I don't mind. It's probably full of spelling mistakes and stuff, I'm Swedish so am trying my hardest :)**

**Also; this one includes a bit of smut; if you don't like it, please stop here! :) Otherwise enjoy - and remember; it's my first proper smut scene; anyone got any positive criticism - let me have it - I need it!  
**

**Vic x  
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* * *

He'd mulled it over in his head several times already. What Caroline had told him had truly spooked him. And he was hardly ever spooked. Not Damon Salvatore; he was unspookable.

Elena somehow knew, or at least she suspected, that something out of the ordinary had happened that night after she'd been kidnapped. But she wasn't sure.

Damon was trying to weigh out the pro's and con's of telling her what he'd found out. His old self would have gloated, reveled in the fact that she was having dreams about him; but now… He wasn't the same person any longer. He didn't want to lose her, not again. Not over something like this.

He'd understood from Caroline's avoiding gaze and nervous twitches that she was still holding out on him, but he didn't want to pry too much, didn't want to seem too interested in Elena. That might make him more of a suspect of messing with Elena's head. And if Caroline couldn't keep her mouth shut to _him_, she could easily tell Stefan and all hell would break lose.

Stefan might not be Elena's boyfriend per se, but he would do anything in his power to keep Elena safe, even from Damon.

Especially from Damon.

There was a slight sneer on Damon's face. Months ago he would have loved to rub this fact in Stefan's face. But with everything that had happened, and with the closeness he had started feeling towards his brother, he just didn't want to ruin this feeling of, companionship they had.

It was late at night. He was sitting in front of the fireplace with a glass of bourbon in his hand. He slightly shifted in his seat when he heard Stefan approaching.

'Good evening, Stefan. Back so soon from hunting down some large forest animals?' he pronounced the word hunting in a rather sarcastic tone.

'Nice to see you too, Damon.' Stefan sat down in the huge armchair next to Damon. 'And for your information, I have not _hunted_ animals. I've been to see Elena. She sounded upset on the phone earlier, so I went to see her.'

There was a slight jolt in Damon's stomach at the sound of her name, and a burning sensation of jealousy, which he swiftly tried to ignore.

'What was she so upset about then?' He actually surprised himself with the ease he made himself sound uninterested. He smirked and turned towards Stefan. 'Don't tell me you've been doing the dirty with Katherine? Naughty boy.'

Stefan rolled his eyes at him and let out a sigh.

'No, nothing like that. I actually couldn't get out of her what it was. And I know it's not really my place any longer, but it hurts me when she's upset. And I just want to help her feel better.'

Now, this shit there really annoyed Damon. Elena was not some sort of fragile little porcelain doll. She was strong and independent. And it was _one_ thing to protect her from, let's say, vampires so old they were referred to as 'the originals', but to want to keep her from feeling things… that was just wrong.

'Have you ever thought about just letting her fend for herself a little? If she's sad, let her feel sad. There are a lot of things going on at the moment. She's been through hell and back. She just needs to catch a break, and let her feelings out.'

As soon as the words had left Damon's lips, he realized what he'd said. And who he sounded like. And the look on Stefan's face confirmed it. Damon wasn't the one empathizing with anyone, and with words like that coming out of his mouth, where was the world coming to?

Stefan's mouth turned up at the corners and he was just about to say something when Damon slammed the empty tumbler on the table in between their armchairs and stood up.

'Oh, just shut up', he snapped at Stefan and stomped out of the library.

* * *

He had no sense of where he was going until he turned the corner to Elena's street. He could see the bedside lamp in her room was still switched on even though it was in the middle of the night, but he was betting on that she'd fallen asleep while writing her diary. She had a tendency to do that, he'd noticed.

He had made it a nightly ritual of sort, to check in on her after she'd zonked out. Driving past her house, looking at her through the window. Just to make sure she was safe.

It annoyed him that he'd taken the role as her invisible (and, of course, sometimes visible) protector. It annoyed him because it made him a lot more like Stefan that he cared to know, and it annoyed him because Damon Salvatore really didn't do heroism. Especially not the kind of heroism that wasn't self serving.

Elena had her window slightly ajar. The thin curtains moved slowly in the breeze of the night air. At first, Damon didn't think about he was doing, but all of a sudden he was standing next to her laying asleep in her bed, just like he had so many months earlier. But this time he didn't have the same intentions.

He could see her eyelids move rapidly under her long lashes. She was dreaming. Damon inclined his head a bit, looking at her intently.

He wondered if she was dreaming about him again. If she was at the place when he told her he loved her. He wondered if the shadow of a smile on her lips was for him.

He reached out and touched the chain on her neck without waking her. It would be so easy to find out. If he took the vervain necklace off her. There was turmoil inside of him, should he do it? Would that mean breaking her trust? Would that be the end of the fragile truce between them?

The immoral side of him told him to do it; she would never find out. All the while the good in him argued that she would never forgive him this. That this was more than invasion of privacy. This would be the break, the end.

Elena moved slightly.

'Damon.'

The whisper was so low that normal human ears would not have registered. But Damon wasn't human. His eyes flickered to her soft pout that had just said his name. His whole body stiff, his hand still on the necklace. With movements quicker than human eyes could follow, the necklace was lying perfectly on Elena's bedside table.

He bent over her, very carefully brushing her hair from her face. Then he let his mind merge with hers.

'Damon.'

Elena was standing in the middle of her room, looking at him with her beautiful brown eyes. There was a sad smile in them.

'You just told me you loved me and now you're leaving. Why tell me if you won't stay?'

He took a careful step forward. He was actually _in_ her dream. He wasn't an innocent bystander watching the scene unfold; he was actually part of it. And she was looking into _his_ eyes, asking him to stay. She wasn't screaming bloody murder. She wasn't running away. She just stood there, looking as stunning as ever, in her tiny shorts and vest top.

She held out her hand. Damon only hesitated for a moment before he took it. He knew that this was just a dream, and not even his to start with. So he was going to savor every moment of it.

Elena placed his hand on her cheek. Her skin was so soft. He could feel the silky texture against his palm. And it felt so real it made him catch his breath. But instead of leaving her subconscious as his head was screaming at him to do, he inched closer to her, closing his eyes, breathing in her scent.

Slowly he lifted his arm touch her other cheek. His thumb caressing her lips. As he opened his eyes to meet hers, her mouth parted under his touch.

'I love you, too.' Her words were slightly muted under his thumb, but he heard her perfectly. The room started spinning by her words. Damon went dizzy and felt nausea for the first time in his vampiric life without an ounce of vervain in his system. And this nausea felt good. It left him on a high.

Suddenly the room stopped spinning and the focus was slowly turned back on Elena. Everything else disappeared. All he could see was her silken hair, the softness of her lips and her deep brown soulful eyes.

She loved him. She said that she loved him back. He forgot that this was a dream. This was real. This was it. This was what he'd been waiting for. Longing for. Wishing for.

He couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed her neck with both hands and kissed her. He ravished her lips, savoring their sweet taste. Letting his tongue slowly massage hers, deepening the kiss, prolonging it.

He could feel her hands in his hair, grabbing hold but still not pulling away. She was actually moving closer, pressing her body against his. A low moan broke between their lips as they parted.

'Come with me', she whispered, eyes dark with passion.

She grabbed his hands and moved them closer to her bed. They lay down together, holding each other close. Damon had never felt this sort of closeness to anyone before.

But before he had a chance to think about it Elena had rolled on top of him, kissing him again with the same intensity as before. He ran his hands down her sides, stopping on her hips. She rubbed herself against him, moving slowly up and down his hardness.

He could feel it; he could smell it on her. She was aroused, by him, together with him. And it nearly tipped him over the edge. It took a lot of his strength not to rip her clothes off right then and there. Instead he grabbed her by her arms and pulled her away from him slightly, forcing her to look at him. She looked faintly annoyed and he sort of liked that.

'Are you sure about this, Elena?' he was searching her eyes for some hidden doubt, but there was none.

She pouted her bottom lip in the most endearing way, and he couldn't help himself but kiss it gently.

'Damon. Don't ruin it.'

He was taken aback by this, but smiled.

'I don't want to take advantage of you', he said.

At this Elena smiled back.

'Of course you're not, silly. This is me, taking advantage of _you_.

She bent her head down and let her tongue follow the outline of his cupid's bow. Her movements made him shiver of pleasure and he let go of her arms and yet again found himself grabbing her neck to pull her closer.

Her scent was overwhelming him. His arousal lay hard against hers and she pressed herself against him while softly moaning non-syllabic words against his lips.

He slipped his hands under her thin top and caressed her lower back, the soft sides of her torso, moving on to her silken belly. Slowly he inched her top upwards and she complied by sitting up and quickly removing it leaving her perfectly rounded breasts free for him to gaze at.

'You're so beautiful', he sighed, reaching out to gently touch her taut nipples. She caught her breath and shivered slightly at the contact. 'You're so beautiful, and I can't believe this is actually happening.'

'Then take me, Damon. Stop talking and take me', she moaned. She grabbed his hands and forced them to grasp her breasts hard before sliding them down her stomach, reaching her shorts.

'Im not a delicate flower. I won't break. Please Damon….' Her eyes pleaded with him to ravage her. His unbeating heart squeezed tight and in a matter of seconds his clothes were on the floor next to the bed.

He'd shifted them over, so Elena was now on her back, still in her tiny shorts, and so breathtakingly beautiful it actually hurt him to look at her.

He leaned over her, placing tiny kisses on her belly, moving upwards and letting his tongue leave a trail of love around her nipples, on her neck and her cheeks. They finally kissed; a deep and slow and passionate kiss. Damon inched her shorts down, and she helped with kicking them to the side, leaving them on top of his clothes.

'I have wanted this for such a long time', he mumbled against her lips. 'Let me savor it.'

He quickly moved downwards letting his lips meet the inside of her left thigh. He put his hands at her sides lifting her slightly before moving to her other thigh, inching closer to the junction between her legs.

Elena sighed of pleasure and tried to lift her hips to his face, but he held her in a firm grip, doing what he said he would; savoring the moment. He looked up at her; her eyes were closed and her mouth was slightly opened, her face filled with emotions; enjoyment, delight, happiness, passion.

He let his hands slide down to her pert bottom while letting his tongue gently and slowly trail the opening of her slit. Placing a tender kiss on the button of her innermost pleasure. She caught her breath and tried to move closer to him, but he held her in firmly in place.

Damon started to lap at her slowly, picking up speed, reaching out one hand to her breast and massaged it gently. She had already been moist when he started but her wetness and her scent was overpowering him. He had planned on taking it slow, but her movements against his tongue and her soft moans while biting her bottom lip had him nearly cursing out loud.

He let go of her breast to part her slit and he was lapping and tonguing her harder and quicker. Then he slid one finger inside of her. She let out an exasperated sigh and he felt her inner walls squeeze against him while he moved on to suck on her clit.

'Da-mon. Daa-moon.' His name came out in short two syllabic words. He couldn't help but looking at her again; her eyes nearly rolled in her head. Her hair wild around her, flushed cheeks and open mouth.

He could feel she was already on the edge, so he slipped a second finger in together with his first, still sucking her clit, letting his tongue flick it ever so gently.

Then there was her release. She lifted her hips against him, nearly screaming his name. He didn't let go of her bottom and he kept sucking her clit and moving his fingers rapidly in her wetness until the last convulsion left her body.

He then slowly let her go and moved up to kiss her lips.

'That was… amazing', she sighed and held out her arms to him. 'That was…'

There was a slight shift in her face and she seemed further away. He could see something like a light flicker in her eyes and her movements were jerky and stiff.

All of a sudden he remembered. This was just a dream. She was waking up and he had to leave – right now!

He slid out of her mind as quickly as he'd come into it. He vampire-sped her necklace back on.

And that's when he realized; they were both naked.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Again, thank you ALL for your wonderful reviews and comments! I still haven't truly figured out how to say thanks 'in person', but I'm going to sit down after New Years to figure it out!**

**I'm so happy that you seem to think I've done Damon's character justice. I've worked really hard to make him sound like the Damon we see on TV. But I've also tried to add how I wanted Damon to react to Elena, instead of him chasing her around like he does in the show.**

**There might be some of you getting a bit upset at what happens in this chapter, but I felt that it was an important part of this story. So my apologies if it's not to everyone's liking :) I'll be sure to make it up to you.**

**A bit of smutty violence in this; not too bad, but if anyone doesn't want to read such stuff, please read no further :) Thanks!**

**OK. Will stop my blabbering...**

**HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you! See you in the next ;D**

**Vic xxx**

* * *

Damon couldn't get his clothes off fast enough. He could still smell her everywhere; on his face, his lips, his hands, his body. Even his shirt and trousers bore a slight fragrance of Elena's innermost heat.

He stalked off to the shower room, a very modern and elegant space if compared to the rest of the boarding house. The open-shower room was tiled in a patterned grey tone. There were green plants in the corners and dimmed spotlights scattered on the walls and ceiling.

Switching the shower on, letting hot water slowly massage away the tension in his body, it made his mind grow clearer and clearer.

What had he done? That was _not_ the way it was supposed to have gone. Never before had he not had full control when he'd entered another person's mind. Never.

It was as if _her_ mind had been in control of _his_, not the other way around.

He could still smell her even though he was soaking wet, so he reached for the soap, trying his hardest to wash away any evidence of her, of what had happened. Of what he had done to her. His body shuddered at the thought and he could taste bile at the back of his throat.

He scrubbed himself raw to rid himself of Elena's smell. But there was no way of getting rid of his memory of her. The way she had sounded as orgasm hit her. The way she had looked into his eyes as he leaned down to kiss her. The way she had said his name; the way she had said she loved him.

He was so preoccupied with his own thoughts that he didn't hear the door opening behind him, until he felt a cool set of hands sliding around his waist.

'Where were you tonight? I was waiting for you, but you never showed.'

Damon turned around to meet a very naked Rose.

'I went hunting', he answered, ignoring her inquisitive hands, while he leaned his head back to rinse his hair.

Thick lather slithered down his torso, his body glistening in the dimness of the overhead spotlights. Rose caught a few bits of lather and rubbed them gently down his belly. When she reached his manhood, he caught her hands in a tight grip.

'Don't. I'm not in the mood.'

They both knew that Rose could have easily made him let go, but she kept her hands still.

'Hunting, did you say?, she asked huskily. 'I thought you stayed away from humans these days?'

'I didn't say I actually fed', he snapped and suddenly let go of her hands.

Rose looked him up and down very appreciatively and put her hands on his chest, not seeming too concerned about his obvious animosity.

'You seem on edge, Damon. You know you can talk to me.'

She looked into his eyes.

'Is it Elena?'

Just the sound of her name made him involuntarily semi-hard. He couldn't help his thoughts wander to Elena's pert breasts and her slightly opened mouth breathing his name. Rose caught up on this and gave him a slight smile.

'I see,' she purred, inching closer to him. 'Can't seem to forget about a certain luscious brunette, who's got your heart in a death grip.'

Rubbing herself against him while kissing his chest, tonguing his nipples did nothing for his hard-on. He closed his eyes, but quickly opened them again, when pictures of a naked and eager Elena flashed through his mind. All of a sudden his erection came to life fully.

He hissed out a warning as Rose grabbed hold of his hardness and started stroking it up and down.

'I could make you feel better', Rose whispered against his chest.

Anger rose inside of him and he grabbed her upper arms and threw her against the wall next to them. She laughed out loud as he feverishly started kissing her neck and shoulders. It triggered his fury even more, so he turned her around, facing the dark grey tiles.

Damon speedily caught both of her hands with one of his own while he spread her legs with his right foot. She complied, letting him take his frustration and anger out on her. He bit down on her neck as he thrust inside of her violently; over and over again. Rose let out a long whimper.

'Is this what you want?' he growled against her shoulder. His pace quickened and by the awkward position Rose was in Damon was actually hurting her, but he didn't care and she tried to not make any more sounds as to not antagonize him even further.

With each thrust he let out a silent moan, close to that of a hurt animal. Rose felt his tears; falling onto her back, burning into her skin. And there was nothing she could do but try to let his pain pass through her.

As quickly as he had started, he let her go, slamming his fist into the wall next to her head.

'I'm sorry, Rose.' His voice barely a whisper.

He leaned over her, his forehead resting against the back of her head. He grabbed her by her waist and pressed her against him.

'I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I…' He didn't continue. His breathing was shallow and she felt for him. She turned to face him and leaned against his chest , stroking his tears away.

'I know, Damon. It's OK. Let's just go to bed.'

She took his hand and led him towards the bedroom where they lay down together, just holding each other. Damon closed his eyes and tried not to think about Elena and the way she had held him earlier, in her dream, in his fantasy.

'If you ever want to talk about what ever has happened tonight, you know I'm here,' Rose whispered in his ear.

He gave her a short nod and kissed her forehead.

He knew.

He knew that Rose would never betray him. She would never leave him. She had loved and lost, just like him. They were alike.

He wished he could feel something more for her than he did. He wished that he wouldn't ever hurt her. He wished that he wouldn't ever leave her.

But he knew he would someday.

* * *

Elena had woken up with a start – butt naked. And she couldn't for her life understand how …

She must have taken her clothes off in her sleep. It was highly embarrassing, not to know what had happened.

She had felt the wetness of the orgasm still in between her thighs and her increased heartbeat had told a story that was all too familiar by now.

She had dreamed of Damon again. But this time it had been different. _He_ had been different. And there had been no actual sex, but he had…

She couldn't think about it.

It was still in the middle of the night, but she still had to have a shower to get rid of the smell of arousal.

That's when she noticed. She smelled of him. She could smell a hint of his aftershave on her skin. And she understood… he must have been in her room.

The weirdest thing happened as she realized this. She should have felt angry and betrayed, but she didn't. Instead she felt tiny little butterflies right at the pit of her stomach, the telltale sign of excitement.

Damon had been in her room; he had probably touched her and kissed her. If this had been more than a dream, he had actually given her one of the best orgasms in her life. Actually; he had given her the only orgasm not made by her own hand.

Her cheeks flushed bright red at the thought.

It couldn't have been real. She shook her head.

_My mind's playing tricks on me_, she thought and smiled at her own stupidity. _There is no way he's been in here, and besides, my necklace is still on_.

There was a pang of disappointment inside of her at the thought, and that was really disconcerting. Would she really have wanted Damon to take advantage of her like that? In her sleep? Without her consenting?

Her own words came back to her: this is me, taking advantage of _you_.

She carefully took the necklace off and laid it down on the side of the sink. Then she stepped into the shower to wash away the heated passion she had dreamed of; but also the last evidence that Damon had been there at all.


	6. Chapter 7

**Hellooo again,**

**Thank you all again for your lovely reviews. Every little word makes my heart skip a beat. This is my first ever time I've let others read my stuff, so I am thrilled that you like it enough to comment. And that you keep coming back for more... Thank you!  
**

**I started this chapter thinking that there would be more revelations at the end, but I think my characters have taken on a life of their own... So guess you have to wait a bit longer. **

**I do have a favor to ask you guys though. It will be at the bottom of the page. Feel free to help me out, since Rose, Elena and Damon didn't wanna listen to me heheh**

**(Yea, I'm not crazy, it's just that I write quite freely, so things can change at anytime. It's the same with the videos I make on youtube... anything can happen although I had a certain plan to start with.)**

**Ok, moving on... will stop rambling now... :)  
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'Slater, what do you know about humans compelling vampires?'

There was a short silence, then Rose could hear Slater's slightly nervous chuckle, something left over from his human days. Slater was a whizkid, a computernerd and not the most socially adept but one of Rose's oldest friends.

'Have you gone completely mental, Rose? I've never… Humans can't compel a vampire. That's unheard of.'

Slater sounded very amused all of a sudden.

'I think that Salvatore bloke have made you go totally bonkers… Don't tell me you've got it in for him as well. I've told you about Damon Salvatore, Rose. He's trouble. And from what I've understood he's too caught up in the doppelg…'

There was a deep intake of (unnecessary) breath from the other end of the line and Rose could literally hear Slater's brain grind to a halt.

'What is it, Slater?' she urged. 'Is there anything you know?'

'No. I'm just going to have to check something out. I'll call you back as soon as I know. You might actually be on to something, Rose.'

There was a silent click as he hung up on her and Rose hurried to the shower room to quickly clean up while keeping an ear out for the phone to ring, which it didn't, to her disappointment.

She met up with Damon in the library. He was already pouring himself a double and offered her a tumbler. She declined. It might be early evening, but for her it was morning. And she needed blood before she could get any alcohol down.

Damon still looked as on edge as he had earlier on. He'd been really upset with Elena branding Rose as a troublemaker. It had taken Rose a while to calm him down, enough for him to relax back into bed, to get him to tell her about what he had meant by his strange questions on human compulsion.

Rose, on the other hand, had taken Elena's short outburst in her stride. Her bet was that Elena didn't even know how jealous she really sounded, and Damon was too torn up inside to notice the possessive tone in Elena's statement.

But Rose was quite sure that Stefan had sussed out the true meaning behind it all. Whether or not he had wanted to realize what it truly meant, well, that was a totally different type of drama. And Rose was not about to stir any more trouble (no pun intended) than she already had. At least not where Stefan was concerned.

Meeting Damon's eyes she gave him a confident smile, trying to will him into happiness. He was beating himself up over something she couldn't get her head around, and since he wouldn't tell her about it fully, there was not much she could do to help.

At first she had planned on taking him out of town, getting him some young and willing college girls to play with and drink from and then compel the hell out of. But she had decided against it quite quickly.

First of all, it wasn't in her nature to do such a thing. And second, it made her feel a bit ill, just the thought of him kissing someone else.

Rose mentally slapped herself across the face.

She was _not_ going to fall for Damon Salvatore.

Glancing back at him, he gave her one of his rare megawatt smiles, which she could feel all the way down to her toes.

She looked away.

Damn.

As if there was anything else she _could_ do. She was his already; hook, line and sinker. There was no way she would leave him. But there was also no way she could give him the distraction she knew he was craving. So she would give him the second best. And that's why she had called Slater up.

Rose didn't believe for a second that a human, let alone someone like Elena, could compel a vampire. She winced slightly at a thought that just occurred to her, but it had to be processed. There might not have been any compulsion at all, but just mere infatuation, which Damon had mistaken for something else.

There was a twist of hurt deep inside of Rose.

'What's up?' Damon reached for her and pulled her down next to him on the sofa. 'Where's your head at?'

Rose was deliberating whether to tell him about her short conversation with Slater when Stefan walked in.

'I'm taking Elena home. Will you still be here when I get back?'

Damon looked over his shoulder at his brother.

'You know, for the first time I'm out of snide remarks. It is that much of a stupid question. Why would you wanna know if we'll still be here? Scared of boogeymen?'

There was a slight sneer on Damon's lips. And it was easy to see that he enjoyed that the none-snide remark turned right into a snide remark after all.

Stefan ignored his brother's jibe and turned to Rose.

There must have been a devil sitting on Rose's left shoulder, because without thinking she stood up, saying;

'I'll take Elena home. You boys need some time alone in your own house. I've been hogging Damon for days now. Besides, Elena and I have some girly bonding to do. With both of us dating a Salvatore brother and all.'

She peeked over at Stefan. 'Well, almost dating, for now anyways.'

He smiled at her, but the smile didn't really reach his eyes.

Rose walked up to him, ignoring the furious look that Damon gave her. She knew he felt as if she was betraying him.

'I wouldn't hurt her, Stefan. I would protect her with my life, just like the two of you.' She nodded towards Damon. 'You all are the only family I have now. And Elena is a part of that family.'

She looked him straight in the eye, not even blinking. The lie rolled over her tongue so easily, it wasn't until later she realized that maybe; it wasn't a lie at all.

There was a sound from the doorway and they all turned around. Elena was standing there, pale as a sheet. She was nervously tugging at the sleeves of her dark blue cardigan.

'So, Rose is driving me home.' Her lips barely moved, and then she just turned and walked towards the front door.

* * *

There was a deafening silence in the car as Rose and Elena headed back to town and Elena's house. After a few minutes Elena turned towards Rose with a defiant look on her face.

'So, you might as well get it over with.' She frowned slightly at Rose's quizzical face. 'Whatever you want to talk to me about.'

Rose continued to drive in silence for a short while longer, until she could see a smaller exit road ahead where she parked the car. She kept the car running so they wouldn't sit in complete darkness. Not that she would have minded, but she thought Elena might.

'What is it you think I want to talk to you about' Rose countered. She was a bit curious as to what Elena would say. But she was disappointed.

'You overheard me tell Stefan that I think you'll do more harm than good in regards to Damon.' Elena's chin turned up defensively. 'I'm not going to apologize to you. If it weren't for you, he'd never have started drinking from humans again.'

Rose let the little mishap slip her by. She knew that the real reason to Damon's relapse was in this car, for sure, but it wasn't her. And she was looking at it right now.

'Well, no, not really.' Now it was Elena's turn to look surprised.

'When did you last see Damon, until today?'

Elena seemed to search her face for some hidden answers. But met her eyes squarely.

'A few days ago. Why?'

'Where did you meet?' Rose could sense that Elena would clam up very soon; there was a silent warning in her eyes.

'Not that I think it should matter to you, but I saw him at The Grill. Only for a few minutes though.'

A light flickered in her dark eyes as a realization hit her.

'Rose.' Her facial expression softened just a fraction. 'I'm not trying to… You don't need to feel…' Elena seemed to have a hard time expressing herself all of a sudden and to Rose's knowledge of Elena, that didn't happen often.

'I have no interest in Damon, Rose.' Her eyes flickered away from Rose's in that instant, making the lie that more obvious.

Rose couldn't help a small smile reaching her lips. If there hadn't been a sliver of heartbreak in that short sentence, it would have amused her to no end telling Elena a piece of her mind. There were times that Elena was using the fact that Damon harbored feelings for her, and Elena _had_ to be aware that she was doing it. Everyone was aware, even Damon, yet he would walk over fire for this tiny little human. Rose felt a sneer lurking and was actually glad that the car was dark enough for Elena not to fully see her facial features.

Rose had a mission to accomplish, all for Damon, for his sanity. Or insanity; whichever way one preferred to see it.

'I know you don't, Elena. That's not the reason I'm asking you.'

The short pause of silence made Elena look up at Rose again.

'I'm asking because of Damon. He seems to think that he has done something to you without your consent.' Rose shook her head slowly. 'And without his own consent. It's absurd even saying it out loud. But you care about Damon, I'm certain of it, by what you told Stefan earlier tonight. And that is the only reason I'm actually asking you this.'

Rose took a deep breath before continuing.

'I'm not asking because I think that you would somehow, want Damon.' She hesitated slightly before speaking again. 'He's just bent on thinking that he has hurt you, but he doesn't want to talk about it. All he's said is that he did something to you without being fully aware of doing it. So, all I'm asking is; what was it that he did?'

Elena looked utterly confused by Rose's words. She slowly lifted her hand and pushed her hair behind her ear. It was such a delicate movement. Rose could see the pulse beating hard on Elena's neck, and she could hear a slight increase of her heartbeat. But when Elena looked over at Rose again, her eyes were cold and her face had closed up.

'We talked of nothing of importance. It wasn't even a proper conversation. He insulted me and asked me to leave so I left.' She looked out the windscreen. 'I'd like to go home now, please.'

* * *

Elena's heart was beating hard and fast. When Rose left she rushed up to her room and quickly closed the door. She ran over to the window to double check that it was closed and locked. Not that it would matter if any supernatural creature wanted to get in, a small glass window was no match for them, especially if they had already been invited.

She sat down on the small seat in front of the window and tried to count her own pulse to slow down her heart rate. She wasn't succeeding very well. She didn't know where to start, or how to loosen up the tangle of thoughts in her head.

Subconsciously she reached for her necklace, filled with vervain.

So, it hadn't been a dream at all. Damon had been in her room that night.

The thought of it made her heart race even faster. There was no way he could have been in her room without her waking up. He couldn't have taken her clothes off without her noticing, but that was a small and meager comfort. He still must have been in her room, during her dream. His scent had been all over her; the masculine and slightly heady scent of his aftershave mixed with his naturally sweet aroma. And that meant that he would have seen her as well, seeing her lust.

The blush reaching Elena's face was almost unbearable, she felt clammy all over at the thought of Damon watching her touch herself. But there was also an excitement brewing deep inside of her. An excitement she tried very hard to put a damper on. Elena tried to force her mind back to the matter at hand. Damon had been in her room while she slept. He might, or might not have seen her, she shuddered at the word, have an orgasm. She remembered falling asleep while writing her diary. It wasn't that late at night, and he could have come in at any time between... the deed, and her falling asleep.

She knew that her head was rambling. She knew that she was trying to cover up the fact that he might have seen her at her most vulnerable.

All of a sudden she felt angry. At him. Talk about overstepping his boundaries.

Not that any of it seemed realistic in the slightest, but since when was her life realistic? She had a best friend who was a witch, a boyfriend who was a vampire and an old schoolfriend who had turned into a werewolf. This was not the time for realism.

She closed her eyes for a second, trying to get some perspective on her thoughts, then re-opened them; and there he was. Blue eyes piercing hers. Silent face carved in stone. She let out a small gasp and tried to squeeze herself into the corner of the window seat.

'Elena.' He spoke her name so gently, had she not seen his lips move, she wouldn't have heard him at all. A wave of heat crashed through her veins and landed in between her thighs. Elena's legs started shaking and she was happy that she was sitting down or she would've crumbled to the floor like a pile of ash. She opened her mouth, trying to speak. But his whole being seemed to crowd her space, press the air out of her lungs and force her to silence.

Damon took a small step towards her, one hand outstretched in front of him, as if to let her know he wasn't going to hurt her. She looked into his eyes trying to sort out her confusion. There was a depth in his eyes that took her breath away, and she knew that if she looked for too long she would disappear. She would melt into him, into his arms and be lost forever.

'You.' Elena shook her head. The fact alone that he was here in her room should really confirm that there was something real and true about what she had been thinking, but her mind seemed to have stopped functioning properly.

'You were in my room.' She was making a statement rather than asking him. The sad look in his eyes and his hand falling down to his side confirmed as much.

'But how? How can I not remember? And what were you doing here?'

Elena stared at him, feeling the heat of embarrassment again reach her face.

'What did you see?' The harshness in her voice made him flinch.

Damon opened his mouth, but closed it again. He was looking at her with eyes so sad and so dark. His face lay in shadow but for a moment she thought she could actually see a tear in the corner of his eye. She put it all down to trick of light playing on his face. Damon Salvatore shedding tears, he possibly couldn't.

'There is so much I should tell you, Elena.' His voice was barely a whisper stroking her skin. 'I'm so sorry. For everything.'

* * *

**Now, I have two ways this could go. And I wonder if you'd like to help me...**

**Do you guys think Damon should fess up? Or should he maybe let a misunderstanding lead Elena astray a little...?**

**:)  
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	7. Chapter 8

**Thank you ever so much for your reviews! They really help me. **

**Some of you wanted Damon to confess, some of you thought it better if Damon left or mislead Elena, diverting her from the truth.**

**Let's find out what Damon decided to do...**

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'There is so much I should tell you, Elena. I'm so sorry. For everything.'

A slight shudder went through Damon's body. He could see Elena follow his movements before looking straight at him.

'What is it, Damon?' There was something in her eyes, something close to hope. He looked away; he couldn't look at her, and know that it was that hope that made him wish he could lie to her. To keep the truth hidden, that had been suffocating him for days now.

She stood up slowly, walking towards him, letting her scent surround him and draw him in. She was mesmerizing, and so unaware of the fact, it made his skin tingle. He inhaled deeply, letting the mouthwatering smell of her give him the strength he needed to once again look her in the eye. This fragile trust in him she bore was overpowering and now, he would be forced to break it. Forever.

She might have tried to put what he did to Jeremy behind her, she might have overlooked him tormenting Stefan and making her friend's life a misery. But this? –This would be the last straw. This utter invasion of her privacy. This would break them. Forever.

He wished this was just a dream. A nightmare. He wished he could wake up and it would all be over. He had wished for that ever since it happened. But every time he opened his eyes, he knew it was still the truth, it had still happened. He was still a monster.

He had breached the trust she had preciously given him. Irreparable damage. And no chance for damage control.

He closed in on her, the last few steps, with vampire speed, taking her breath away. She blinked once and then looked up at him.

Damon was drowning in the depth of her eyes. She pulled him in, dragged him down, and kept him underwater. And he loved every second of it.

Damon took one ragged breath, before Elena stopped him.

'Whatever you need to tell me, Damon, will it hurt me?'

Pleading eyes looking into his, breaking his heart, all over again. He nodded slowly, wishing he didn't have to.

Elena's eyelashes fluttered slightly. Damon saw her head bobbing gently, like a tiny flower in the morning breeze.

'Then, why tell me, if it's going to hurt me? Why not leave it as it is?' Her breathing came in short bursts and in her eyes he could see a fraction of the fierce flame that used to burn brightly whenever she would look at him. The flame that he loved. The flame that scared the hell out of him and that kept him strong and true to his word; he would never keep the truth from her, he would never lie to her.

_Twinflames_.

Damon could see tears slowly making their way down her cheeks, landing on the front of her cardigan. He reached out to cup her face with his hands and she closed her eyes and leaned in to his touch. The serenity of her movement caught him by surprise.

Last time he had touched her this way she had tried to escape him. But now, she was standing still, pulling him in by the pure force of her mind.

'Please, whatever it is, Damon. Can't it wait?'

'No', he whispered, gently leaning his forehead against hers. 'It can't. And I'm so sorry. There are no words for how sorry I truly am.'

He lost the power over his voice for a second. Swallowing deeply, he forced her head back a little, still holding her face carefully in his hands, stroking her tears away with his thumbs.

'When I tell you this, I need you to understand that I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to do this, never. And I have no explanation as to why it happened. And I know you will probably not believe me, but I had no control. I don't know why, but I didn't. I'm not saying this to cast blame on anyone. I take full responsibility for this.'

'I'm telling you this because it is the truth, and you deserve the truth. I would never lie to you. You know that, Elena.'

He was searching her eyes, her beautiful eyes, looking at him like there was no one else but him in the world. For the first time she was looking at him without doubt, without fear or hatred, for the first time; and he would lose this. Lose her.

_Have I lost you forever?_

She gripped the sides of his shirt with both her hands, clasping the material hard, closing the last gap between them. She forced his body closer to hers and her eyes locked onto his.

'Then don't tell me. Lie to me. Mislead me. I'm asking you, Damon, to do this, for me.' There was a slight desperation to her voice. One that threw Damon a little off balance in his resolve.

He started shaking his head and opened his mouth to speak, but she stopped him.

'You always tell me you'd do anything for me; then do this for me. Just tonight. Lie to me tonight.'

He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath.

'This is something I can't keep from you, not any longer.' Opening his eyes again, he could see the defeat in hers.

'I came into your room the other night. You were asleep. I only came in because I wanted to make sure you were ok. I've been doing that ever since you were kidnapped.' His eyes flickered away from hers. 'But this night you were dreaming and you said my name. Before I knew how to stop myself I'd taken your necklace off and I… I entered your mind.'

Elena let go of his shirt and took a step back. He didn't stop her. He let his arms fall to his side. And all the while he could feel her eyes burning holes into his forsaken soul.

_Yes, you have lost me forever._

There was no going back now.

'We did things in your dreams. I'm not proud of what I did; it was terrible what I did to you. But I thought it was a dream. A dream that I was controlling.'

'Then you started waking up, so I left your mind. And that's when I realized, it had happened.' This time his eyes found hers again. 'It had really happened.'

The last few words were barely a whisper. Damon had no strength left. And even though it shattered him, he felt relief.

At least she now knew.

* * *

**To be honest, I had no idea what Damon would do myself half the time while writing this chapter. But I have to agree with the majority of you; honesty is the core to Damon & Elena' relationship. He might not confess to any of his crimes if she doesn't ask him to, like he did in my story. But if asked he would never lie to her. The stark difference to the relationship she has with Stefan, and what truly defines Delena.**

**Again, thank you ever so much for taking the time to suggest the continuance. It means sooo incredibly much to me! **

**And also, thank you for all the Story Alerts :D  
**

**Next chapter will start revealing as to why Damon seems to think there are ways for Elena to compel him, and also Elena's reaction to Damon's confession.**

**I do hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are always welcome, good or bad :) And as usual, constructive criticism is never a pain to read!**

**Vicx  
**


	8. Chapter 9

**A/N: Again, thank you so much for your comments. And also for all the alerts! They all seriously want me to finish my chapters sooner :)**

**All feedback is welcome, and I'm enjoying your thoughts on what might be the reason for the human compulsion...**

**We are getting closer to the answer now. **

**Song of the week: Adele - Rolling in the deep!**

* * *

Minutes after dropping Elena off outside her house, Rose got a call from Slater. He had found something out, that he didn't want to talk about over the phone, so he'd asked her to come over as soon as she could.

She'd decided not to call Damon. She wanted to know what Slater knew before letting Damon in on anything. It might turn out a dead end anyway.

As she got there, Alice, Slater's human girlfriend, greeted her with a cup of warmed up blood and a million questions about Damon, having nearly had a heart attack when he'd come to rescue Elena from the vampires sent to take her to Klaus.

Rose knew that she shouldn't tell them about herself and Damon, but there were something in Alice's questions she didn't like and Rose just really wanted Alice put in her place. Kind of a silent statement to shut up and leave him alone.

It was common knowledge that all Alice wanted from Slater was to be turned. Rose knew that Slater would never give in to Alice's pleas for eternal life, but he liked having her around, since he'd ''never met a human as brainy as him before'' and he enjoyed her company.

'I've only bumped into one rumor of a human compelling a vampire while searching', Slater mused. 'It's not even pure compulsion, it's called linking. It's triggered by endorphins within the human and vampire.'

Rose felt a bit taken aback by this.

'So what you mean is; it's an emotional bond between a human and vampire?'

Slater got a sly expression on his face before answering.

'Yep. It's all about love, baby. It's when a vampire and human fall in love. But it's not just any love, it's a love that creates a link between them. And get this. It doesn't happen to any human or any vampire. It's between a doppelganger and her protector.'

Slater was getting all exited now.

'A doppelganger is created, right? But she needs to be protected until she serves her purpose. Well, that means she needs protection from other harm. There are vampires created equally to protect said doppelganger. When the doppelganger's job is done, well, so is the vampire's. Cool, huh?'

'And vampires are natural predators. So, the only way to keep a vampire from killing a _human_ doppelganger is for the vampire to fall in love.' Alice chimed in. 'It's so nifty.'

Rose was quite for a while.

'If I get this straight, this means that Damon is Elena's protector, and when Klaus has sacrificed her, Damon will be taken care of as well.' Rose really didn't like the sound of that. If she would give Damon up for Elena, it would be for them staying together, not for them to die.

The revelation that Damon and Elena shared an emotional link due to her being a doppelganger had made Rose forget that Slater didn't know the real reason she was asking all of her questions. When she looked at him, his mouth had dropped open and he was staring at her with an empty gaze.

'Rose. Are you telling me that Elena has linked with Damon Salvatore? I thought _you_ were hooking up with him?' It was Alice, her eyes shiny of excitement. She sat down next to Slater who still seemed stunned by the information.

'Does this mean that the rumors about linking are actually true? – That is so cool.' Alice started laughing out loud, which seemed to startle Slater back to life.

His eyes met Rose's.

'What is their bond like? Is it palpable? What do they do? Can they feel each other's emotions? Do they know when the other is in trouble?' Slater looked feverish all of a sudden. 'There are so many questions I have for them. You need to bring them here. Let me study them for a while. Do they know about it at all? Have you told them?'

Rose shook her head. 'I'm not going to either. I'm not going to drive them into the arms of each other. Damon is not ready for that kind of responsibility. And Elena, well, she doesn't care for him enough.'

Rose looked down on her hands. They were shaking slightly.

'It might be best if they never find out. What good would it do them anyway? The reason for linking died out with Katherine. Elena is with Stefan now; he'll be able to protect her perfectly fine.'

Slater looked at Rose with a questioning smile.

'Don't you get it, Rose? Damon was turned for protection, by Katherine, and it wasn't for love. He turned Elena's birth mother; he has her blood in his veins. That means he has Elena's blood in him as well. It might sound cheesy, but in a way it's his destiny.' Slater shrugged his shoulders.

Alice giggled and poked his side.

'Yea, Slater, that sounded a bit cheesy, alright.' She mimicked him in a funny voice. 'It's his destiny. Nice one.'

* * *

'You!' Elena exclaimed. 'Do you know what you've done? –You compelled me in my sleep. You took advantage of me. You used me and now you say that you didn't _mean_ it?'

'No, Elena, I didn't compel you. That's what I've been trying to tell you. I had no control over myself, of what happened.' There was desperation in his voice. And his blue eyes shone brighter than ever. Elena turned away with a frown of disgust. But it was mingled with a blush.

She didn't know what horrified her more. What Damon had put her through, or the feeling of excitement at the thought of where his mouth had been? She could feel him inch closer to her, but she kept her back turned to him, not wanting him to see her cheeks stained red.

'I'm sorry, Elena.' He was so close to her she could feel his breath in her hair. The sweet scent of him filled her senses fully and she was reminded of the night in question, of his voice whispering her name. His cool hands stroking her skin, his mouth... that wicked mouth of his doing things to her, she never thought possible.

There was a slight breeze and he was standing in front of her, heart on his sleeves and guilt in his eyes.

How could she hate him when all she wanted to do was make him kiss her? She wanted him so badly it was physically hurting her. And it scared her because she had never wanted anyone as much as she wanted him. But the longing was mixed with pure fear. She should hate him; she should be disgusted by him.

Elena could feel the heat from her core pressing against her jeans. Her body was aching for Damon's touch, and her underwear felt damp of anticipation. And at the same time, she had to force herself not to slap him across the face and scream at him to leave her alone. She loathed him for making her feel like this. She was supposed to love his brother, not want _him_. Not Damon.

Damon could hear Elena's pulse racing. Her breath was uneven and her pupils fully dilated. He tried desperately to assess the situation. If he hadn't known better he'd say she was exited. But the circumstances should say otherwise; she should be furious beyond comprehension.

He let his eyes slide up and down her body and was taken aback seeing her nipples straining against her dark blue cardigan. She tried to cover herself by crossing her arms over her chest.

Confused he met her eyes again, seeing nothing but lust streaming out of them. He took a step backwards, nearly backing into the window seat. This was a reaction he never would have expected from her. Not in a million years.

He knew the female race well; he knew how their bodies worked, but Elena, she was sending out all the wrong signals for someone who should be fuming with anger over the mess he had made of things.

Elena could see Damon's bewilderment and tried to compose herself, but she knew that her body was betraying her, and she cursed under her breath.

'You need to leave', she mumbled through gritted teeth. 'I'm not asking you. I'm telling you. You. Need. To leave.' Her words were short of an echo of Damon's own words when he'd smelled Elena's blood after Vicki was killed at the Halloween party a year earlier.

She stared him straight in the eye while talking. He saw her pulse throbbing against her throat and he could hear her heart pounding even stronger in her chest. He was strangely turned on by the mere sight of her. Slightly disheveled hair, blushing cheeks and eyes like bottomless pools of desire. She turned her eyes away from him, letting her hair fall like a curtain in front of her face.

He decided to comply with her request and slowly walked towards the door. Just as he passed her though, he paused for just a sliver of a second to breathe her in. He could feel his whole body aching to touch her as he sensed her craving for him to do so. And he closed his eyes to remember how sweet she'd tasted and how perfect she'd felt in his arms.

'Damon', she warned.

'Elena', he purred.

Their eyes met for a short moment before he slid past her, their arms grazing, and he knew.

She wasn't capable of hating him forever.

* * *

**Remember; reviews are always welcome - good or bad!**

**Vic xxx**


	9. Chapter 10

**Thank you again for all of your lovely reviews! They warm my heart.**

**And also a huge thanks for the story/author/favorite story alerts - so cool! :) I heart you!**

**This chapter lacks of Damon and Elena, but is needed for the story to continue I think. Next chapter they will hopefully show up again hahah**

**As always; I do not own The Vampire Diaries or the characters, but I have utmost respect for the writers of the characters and the actors portraying them. :)**

**With all that said:**

* * *

Thoughts were reeling in Rose's head. Questions she couldn't answer and answers she couldn't bear. She was on her way to Slater again to see if he'd been able to dig out some more information about whatever it was Damon and Elena was confined to. Rose couldn't bear think of it any other way. It was a confinement, not being able to let go of each other. It wasn't natural.

And all she wanted to find out was if there was ever a way to break the emotional chain that linked Damon to Elena. Part from the obvious, as Alice had so kindly stated; death. If Slater hadn't given Rose a warning glance, Alice might not be sitting in Slater's vampire proof apartment today grinning her stupid grin as Rose walked in.

Rose had kept quiet for over two weeks about where she'd been and what she'd found out about linking to Damon. But even though she felt a bit distracted by her findings Damon's changed demeanor didn't pass her by during those weeks. He was happier, and the serious frown that had been plastered on his face was gone. He was even doing his normal banter routine with Stefan. And he'd contentedly treated Rose to massages with scented oils and burning candles before he gingerly made love to her every night.

He was a different person, and she had wanted to ask him about it, but was afraid what he would tell her, and that this lovely side he was showing her all of a sudden would disappear as soon as she uttered the words. So she kept quiet and enjoyed the sweetness he was showering her with.

She also noticed the lack of visits from Elena. She wondered about that too, but at this moment in time she was just happy about the breathing space it allowed her. She tensed up every time Elena's name was brought up, surreptitiously looking over at Damon to take note of his reactions. So far she had observed nothing, but the burning feeling was still there. That feeling of betrayal.

And it irked her. She had made herself a promise not to fall for Damon. But he had shown her a side of himself that was so very vulnerable and honest. And it was hard, because he could be so loving when he wanted to, and right now he was showing her his good side at all times. So she kept falling and he kept changing the depths and she never hit the ground.

'What have you got for me?' she asked Slater as she sat down next to him by his massive desk filled with computer screens.

'Well. Where would you like me to start? –That there is no way to break their bond part from death?' Rose ignored the light snigger from the sofa where Alice was perked. 'Or that there might be a way to work around the link?'

At this Rose perked up a bit.

'Spill', she said and turned to face him. He had her undivided attention now, and he basked in the glow.

'So, how about this. Guess what is used to break the link, not forever, but to prevent it from working properly?' Slater's eyes glistened and his smile was unashamedly triumphant. 'What do humans use to stop us from compelling them?' He nodded excitedly at Rose as her eyes caught his.

'Vervain', she breathed slowly, thinking of the necklace around Elena's neck and how Elijah had ripped it off her to compel her.

'Touché.' Slater was grinning by now.

'So, you mean that as long Elena is wearing the vervain, there is no way for her and Damon to link properly?'

'Well, here's the thing. I'm not really sure about the rest of it. I only found out how they prevent them from linking in the first place. But once the link is made.' Slater shrugged his shoulders. 'It's a bit vague on that front. Most probably because once they link the link is not to be broken, so no one has bothered to figure it out.'

Slater's jaw was working a bit, before he asked the question he kind of knew that Rose wouldn't like.

'Have you noticed a bond between them even though she's wearing vervain? That might mean that it's too late, you know.'

'No, it's not too late', Rose's snapped and she looked at him with her chin raised. 'They haven't been alone together without her wearing vervain. She's very conscious of it, and would never leave home without it. And to my knowledge, Damon wouldn't want her without vervain either.'

He held his hands up, surrendering. 'Ok, fine. I just had to ask.' He rolled his eyes at Alice who was sitting with her legs curled underneath her, reading a gossip magazine. Alice laughed quietly.

'Geez, Rose', Slater continued. 'It's not like I'm trying to ruin your love life or anything, but this is just too freaking awesome to let it pass me by. I seriously want to see them interact. We could learn so much from them.'

'Damon will not be your lab rat, if that's what you think, Slater.' Rose's eyes were shooting arrows at the tiny vampire and he curled back in his seat a little.

'Rose… You know I would never think of him like that. But we don't know enough. Let's say, for example that they have linked and Elena dies, will Damon survive that? What is their link made out of? How strong is it?'

'And let's say for argument's sake that they have linked already even though she's wearing vervain now. Are they able to feel each others emotions? Can Damon sense her? Can she sense him? Is it like a one way bonding where it is only the vampire who feels his human, or is it a two way thing? Does the vervain diminish the link completely or is it still perceptible'

Slater turned against the computer and scrolled down a few pages.

'This is sort of what I've gathered out of the info I received', he glanced sideways at Rose.' Which wasn't a lot by the way.' Rose could see he was dying to just drive over to Mystic Falls himself to find out more. She gave him a warning stare before he went on.

'As I've already told you before, a vampire is created to protect the doppelganger, no matter what. When he has done his…job, he's dispersed. He is not of any need to anyone any longer. I thought it meant that he would be killed off, but… I don't think that's what it means at all.'

'He's dispersed; meaning he's disbanded, broken off, separated from the doppelganger.' Slater cleared his throat before continuing. 'In other words, it seems like he kind of, dies by himself. There is no need to kill him.'

'What do you mean he dies by himself? As in _killing_ himself?' Rose shook her head feverishly. 'No, Damon would never do that.'

'Sorry Rose, it might mean just that, or it might mean that he would…'

Alice, sensitive as ever, continued for him.

'Damon could just spontaneously combust on the spot for all we know.'

'Shut up, Alice', Slater frowned at her. She poked her tongue out at him and continued reading her magazine.

Rose covered her face with her hands while resting her elbows on the desk. She stared blindly in front of her, seeing nothing.

'So whatever I do, I might risk losing him.'

Slater clumsily put his hand on her shoulder.

'Or, you do what you _can_ do at this point.'

Rose looked up at him and grabbed his hand with both of hers.

'What, Slater. Is there something you haven't told me?'

He slowly shook his head.

'No. What I meant was. It seems all you can do now is to keep Elena safe, if you want to keep _him_ safe too.

* * *

**I won't have any updates for this story until after the next epi (can't wait, can't wait, can't wait!) So I hope you'll all bear with me :)**

**I have my sister's funeral to go to, and my pretty daughter has come home again from spending a month with her daddy, so I won't have as much time to update, but I will CERTAINLY try!**

**My other story, Watch out Damon - your emotions are showing has recently been updated as well - feel free to check it :D**

**And remember that reviews are always welcome :D**

**Vic xxx**


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